The beating allegedly resulted in numerous injuries to the child, including cuts and bruises to the childs back, buttocks, ankles, legs and scrotum, along with defensive wounds to the childs hands. Peterson then texted the boys mother, saying that one wound in particular would make her mad at me about his leg. I got kinda good wit the tail end of the switch.
Peterson also allegedly said via text message to the childs mother that he felt bad after the fact when I notice the switch was wrapping around hitting I (sic) thigh and also acknowledged the injury to the childs scrotum in a text message, saying, Got him in nuts once I noticed. But I felt so bad, n Im all tearing that butt up when needed! I start putting them in timeout. N save the whooping for needed memories! In further text messages, Peterson allegedly said, Never do I go overboard! But all my kids will know, hey daddy has the biggie heart but dont play no games when it comes to acting right.
According to police reports, the child, however, had a slightly different story, telling authorities that Daddy Peterson hit me on my face. The child also expressed worry that Peterson would punch him in the face if the child reported the incident to authorities. He also said that he had been hit by a belt and that there are a lot of belts in Daddys closet. He added that Peterson put leaves in his mouth when he was being hit with the switch while his pants were down. The child told his mother that Peterson likes belts and switches and has a whooping room.
When Peterson was asked how he felt about the incident, he said, To be honest with you, I feel very confident with my actions because I know my intent. He also described the incident as a normal whooping in regards to the welps on the childs buttocks, but that he felt bad immediately when he saw the injuries on the childs legs. Peterson estimated he swatted his son 10 to 15 times, but hes not sure because he doesnt ever count how many pops I give my kids.
